USC QB Sam Darnold has been named one of 10 finalists for the Manning Award, an annual trophy presented to the nation's best quarterback. Darnold, who recently earned Pac-12 Freshman Offensive Player of the Year honors, is one of three Pac-12 QBs and one of just two freshmen to be named finalists for the award.
Darnold is 8-1 as a starter this year, having won the last eight straight after falling just short in his first career start at Utah. He ranks sixth in the nation in completion pct (68.1) and 10th in the nation in passing efficiency (161.01). He leads all freshmen in those categories, as well as in TD passes (26) and yards per attempt (8.4).
Not only is Darnold accurate through the air, he's dangerous on the ground. His 230 rush yards are the most by a USC quarterback in a single season since Reggie Perry had 254 in 1991, and he's scored 2 rush TD this year. His rushing ability has allowed the offense to open up --- the Trojans have racked up 400+ yards of offense in each of Darnold's nine starts.
Many of Darnold's accomplishments this year have stacked up next to those of USC QB Matt Leinart, the inaugural Manning Award winner. Darnold's current streak of eight games with multiple TD is the longest streak since Leinart posted 15 such games in a row over the span of two seasons. Darnold also became the first USC QB since Leinart in 2004 to pass for 230+ yards and rush for 40+ yards in a single game, doing it twice this season (Utah, Arizona).
Outside of Leinart, past winners of the Manning Award include Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, Cam Newton, Matt Ryan and more.
This year's winner will be announced in January, after all the bowl games have concluded.
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